The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recently released data on telecom subscriptions as of September 30. So far, we’ve only discussed subscriber growth or decline, and we’ve yet to look at the growth and mobile number portability numbers. In this analysis, let’s look at the numbers and circles related to it.
Dual SIM usage:
The question going forward is not about dual SIM use, but who will take the primary SIM card slot in your device. The primary number is the one with voice and data usage, while a secondary number is a supplement for those who can afford it on a minimal minimum plan. However, we will discuss this in another analysis. So a dip in the subscriber base or drop in numbers shouldn’t surprise with inevitable rate revisions given the economic headwind.
Subscriber growth or decline
Before September, now that we have the numbers, let’s see who lost subscribers and who gained in which circle. The tabular numbers against the respective circles will all tell the story.
Wireless Subscriber Numbers and MNP Requests: TRAI Sept Data
| SL. no | Circle | Transfer requests (in millions) | Airtel | BSNL/MTNL | Jio | Vodafone idea | Subscribers | |
| September 22 | September 22 | September 22 | September 22 | September 22 | Subscriber Addition | Subscriber loss | ||
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh and Telangana | 0.59 | 80,835 | -179,666 | -56,672 | -465,373 | 80,835 | -701,711 |
| 2 | Assam | 0.07 | 87,535 | 24.012 | 6,518 | -52,620 | 118.065 | -52,620 |
| 3 | Bihar | 0.76 | 212,602 | 22,179 | 379,644 | -155,440 | 614,425 | -155,440 |
| 4 | Delhi | 0.53 | 79,142 | -397 | 84,905 | 85,909 | 249,956 | -397 |
| 5 | Gujarat | 0.94 | -118,618 | -71,001 | 53,029 | -416,483 | 53,029 | -606.102 |
| 6 | Haryana | 0.33 | 32,809 | 90,964 | -25,883 | -42,253 | 123,773 | -68,136 |
| 7 | Himachal Pradesh | 0.05 | 17,289 | -44,710 | 43,570 | -6,795 | 60,859 | -51,505 |
| 8 | Jammu and Kashmir | 0.03 | 21,955 | -1,490 | 50,173 | -13,718 | 72,128 | -15.208 |
| 9 | Karnataka | 0.65 | 37,977 | -33,877 | 54,022 | 225,732 | 317,731 | -33,877 |
| 10 | Kerala | 0.2 | 13,313 | -69,389 | 72,221 | -88,086 | 85,534 | -157,475 |
| 11 | Kolkata | 0.15 | 4,405 | -12,369 | -16.016 | -31,782 | 4,405 | -60,167 |
| 12 | Madhya Pradesh | 1.05 | -2,084 | -48,635 | 106,678 | -847,549 | 106,678 | -898,268 |
| 13 | Maharashtra and Goa | 1.01 | 108,420 | -115,941 | 78,935 | -557.109 | 187.355 | -673.050 |
| 14 | Mumbai | 0.23 | 31,697 | -7093 | 10,740 | -92,314 | 42,437 | -99,407 |
| 15 | Northeast | 0.02 | 30,642 | -8671 | 32,235 | -13,695 | 62,877 | -22,366 |
| 16 | Odisha | 0.15 | 67,237 | 13,681 | -19,823 | -3,024 | 80,918 | -22,847 |
| 17 | punjab | 0.32 | 26,379 | -21,925 | 35,398 | -570,410 | 61,777 | -592,335 |
| 18 | Rajasthan | 0.78 | -48,391 | -21,935 | 108,482 | -141.095 | 108,482 | -211,421 |
| 19 | Tamilnadu | 0.48 | 78,155 | -10,259 | -145,431 | -110,273 | 78,155 | -265,963 |
| 20 | Uttar Pradesh East | 1.68 | -343,673 | -273,177 | 39,969 | -301,493 | 39,969 | -918.343 |
| 21 | Uttar Pradesh West | 1.26 | -66,439 | -26.209 | -42,428 | -225,234 | -360,310 | |
| 22 | West Bengal | 0.7 | 61,580 | 6,192 | -125,476 | -188,439 | 67,772 | -313,915 |
| Total | 11.98 | 412,767 | -782,226 | 724,790 | -4,011,544 | 2,617,160 | -6,280,863 | |
Airtel wireless subscribers:
although Airtel gained a total of 412,767 subscribers, the telco lost subscribers in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh East and Uttar Pradesh West. On the other hand, airtel witnessed subscriber additions in the rest of the 17 circles, with Maharashtra & Goa topping the charts, followed by Assam.
Read also: Airtel is witnessing steady growth in wireless and wired subscribers: TRAI data
BSNL wireless subscribers:
BSNL lost a total of 782,226 wireless subscribers. However, the public sector telco witnessed the addition of subscribers in circles of Assam, Bihar, Haryana, Odisha and West Bengal.
Jio wireless subscribers:
Jio witnessed the highest overall wireless subscriber increase of 724,790 in September. However, the telco lost subscribers in Andhra Pradesh & Telangana, Haryana, Kolkata, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, West & West Bengal circles.
Read also: Vodafone Idea lost subscribers in all its circles except Delhi and Karnataka: TRAI data
Vodafone idea wireless subscribers:
Vodafone idea witnessed the addition of subscribers in just two circles, Delhi and Karnataka, with a total wireless subscriber loss of 4,011,544 in September.
Overview of subscriber profit/loss:
We can observe extreme cases and a mid-case with subscriber additions and losses. Vodafone Idea lost the largest number of wireless subscribers, followed by BSNL.
Requests for mobile number portability:
Although TRAI publishes MNP data, we could not make a connection with the available figures. Therefore, we cannot deduce whether the MNP requests came true using only the data for the number of MNP requests received. Also, MNP requests are rounded to millions, as opposed to accurately reported subscriber numbers.
However, according to the available data, Uttar Pradesh East, Uttar Pradesh West, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra & Goa and Gujarat circles topped the highest number of recorded MNP requests, according to TRAI.
Also check: You can view the past year wireless subscriber statistics by clicking here.
Conclusion:
Airtel witnessed the highest subscriber loss in Uttar Pradesh East and Gujarat circles. On the other hand, Vodafone Idea noticed the biggest subscriber loss in Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra & Goa and Andhra Pradesh & Telangana circles. Jio witnessed the highest subscriber loss in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. BSNL saw the highest subscriber loss in Uttar Pradesh East, Andhra Pradesh & Telangana and Maharashtra & Goa.
Uttar Pradesh West: Interestingly, none of the telcos got subscribers in this circle.
These subscriber additions can be New Connections or MNP subscribers. Similarly, subscriber loss can include discarding MNP subscribers or secondary numbers or reusing idle connections.
Remark: Manual work is involved and care is taken to prevent errors. Please report any corrections.
